The Permeation Polarity
by martindeporres
Summary: After "The Roxane Corollary"; L & P have to adjust to their new found relationship. Overlaps with events from "The Monopolar Expedition" with some slight twists. Chapter 3 has erotic and sensual moments. Thanks to all L/P fans and authors for reviewing.
1. Recap

Saturday morning dawned on the City of Pasadena, California.

As the fog of sleep slowly lifted from his eyelids, Leonard Hofstadter opened his eyes to look around the room.

Everything looked the same in his bedroom. Nothing was where it shouldn't be. He uncovered the bed sheet from himself and sat up on his bed. Rubbing his eyes, he stood up and went to the mirror to look at his reflection.

_I'm still me, don't look any different,_ he thought.

But things were different as his mind slowly reached for the memories of last night and those memories for the first time contained happiness and a glow that seemed to carry him off his feet and made him bounce to the bathroom to begin his day. For Leonard it was a new morning, a different morning, different from any other morning in his life.

After splashing water on his face and taking care of his bodily functions, Leonard hopped in the shower and let the soothing warm water run over him and wash away all the frustrations, dashed hopes and dreams he had overcome with the spending of one evening in the company of the woman he had declared his love for – Penny.

_Oh my God! Is it really true?! Did Penny say that she loved me last night? Did I tell her I loved her?_ He questioned himself as he replayed in his mind the entire evening as the warm water fell over him.

He remembered the thrill of her touch, the warmth of her skin, the breath from her mouth, the smell of her body and sweet enticement of her lips pressed on his while his body pressed together with hers in an embrace of pure ecstasy.

_Wow, we finally overcame that hurdle!_

Even though, Penny and Leonard had not consummated their evening with any love making, in Leonard's mind the evening was a great success and the fact that no sexual relations had culminated the evening made it a greater triumph still. This proved to him that his attraction was more than the initial physical one he had two years ago and now had developed an accompanying mental aspect, where they enjoyed each other's company for what they had to say to each other.

First he had declared his feelings for her. She had likewise expressed her feelings for him. Secondly they had discussed things more openly and that felt to him almost as good as making love with Penny. Next, albeit terrified he had stood up to that monosyllabic orbital mass of a bully Kurt, Penny's ex-boyfriend. Although the dragon had breathed fire on him, he had not backed down and with his verbal swords had cut that inflated, overbearing ego down; also Penny's own daggers helped the situation in perhaps ridding themselves of this vile creature of a man mountain once and for all. After drying off and dressing for a leisurely Saturday, he planned to go over to Penny's later on and see how she was doing. Of course, he first needed to deal with his bedeviling roommate, friend and colleague – Doctor Sheldon Cooper.

Sure enough by 6:45 a.m., Sheldon rose from his bedroom to prepare himself breakfast in preparation to watch one of his favorite shows – _**Dr. Who**_ on BBC America.

"Good morning Leonard. My! You are up early today. Usually Saturdays, finds you at this time of day still enthralled in slumber." He remarked.

"Well this morning is different Sheldon!" Leonard remarked back knowing that it was unusual for him to be this up early considering he had fallen asleep just past 2:00 in the morning. So he was only going on 4 hours of sleep and it seemed strange to him why he hadn't slept until close to noon. Maybe his mind and body were still charged with the excitement with last night and we're eager to continue this new found journey with Penny.

"I gathered from your comment earlier this morning that your evening with Penny went well enough that you won't be introducing a feline addition to our perfectly balanced living arrangements." Sheldon stated.

"You surmised well. As far as it being balanced around here, I doubt we have come close to achieving that in this apartment." Leonard retorted trying to subtly remind Sheldon that no one with his idiosyncrasies was perfectly balanced.

"So in the few minutes that I have left before Dr. Who, I'm curious to know what miraculous processes you achieved to completely alter your horrible track record with Penny." Sheldon queried either completely oblivious to Leonard's inference or rather than getting sidetracked in another conversation about balance in the apartment. Sheldon had chosen the latter track.

"In a nutshell, Sheldon, I told her I loved her and she told me she loved me. We kissed and embraced and held hands like any other couple in love usually do." Leonard declared hoping that the statement would satisfy his colleague, which based on past experience was highly unlikely.

"So did you achieve coitus with Penny?" Sheldon asked matter of fact as a doctor would ask a sterile question to a patient.

Leonard shot back: "You know I know that with your high IQ it's hard for you to break away from mathematical formulas that hold the answer to the problem even before it's written. But sometimes, the asteroid belt produces stray collisions that send the projectiles off their intended track and produce a never before seen orbital trajectory."

Leonard continued: "So just as we know that this planet has been hit by asteroids and meteors and will be hit again by an extinction level event, so it is that asteroid Leonard has collided with Terra Firma Penny."

"So you did achieve coitus?" Sheldon responded.

"To satisfy your physicist's curiosity, no we did not and I actually feel better that it didn't happen."

"I'm confused. Isn't that the desired end result couples who have declared emotional commitment brought on by pheromones secreted, endorphins pumped into the body from the brain wish to achieve?" Sheldon asked again, because to him it seemed that sexual intercourse based on chemical stimulation from internal and external optical stimuli was the logical outcome for what Leonard had been attempting ever since he had laid eyes on Penny.

"Normally, yes, that would be the end result." Leonard declared.

"So why didn't you engage in sexual intercourse, if as you say, declared an emotional attachment to each other?" Sheldon asked once more.

Leonard thought back to the evening and pinpointed the exact moment that evening's intended trajectory took a hit by the random asteroid – Kurt.

Leonard sat down in his spot, while Sheldon joined him by sitting in his.

"Our evening was knocked off kilter by an asteroid." Leonard stated.

"What was this asteroid you speak of?" Sheldon questioned.

"It was Penny's ex-boyfriend, Kurt." Leonard replied.

"Oh no!" Sheldon retorted. He shuddered to think about encountering the mass of man that was Penny's ex-boyfriend; one of the few things that struck fear into the heart of Sheldon Cooper along with bears and Leslie Winkle.

"Oh yes, I mean when you think of the odds against running into another resident of Pasadena, 20 miles from their common 'stomping grounds' if you will, it boggles the mind that he happened to be in the exact same restaurant at the exact same time." Leonard continued.

"The odds of that happening are calculable but it would astound any lay person as to what their chances of occurring would be."

"Leonard, what did you do?" Sheldon asked him, showing a curiosity not seen often in Leonard's tall and thin roommate.

"Believe it or not, I stood up to him and chewed him out for belittling me." Leonard recounted.

"And you lived to tell the tale?" Sheldon exclaimed.

"Well, he shoved me back into the booth, but then Penny got into his face, chest actually and gave him a tongue lashing that I would be afraid to be on the receiving end of." Leonard stated.

"And that stopped him?" Sheldon asked.

"Well, the restaurant manager and the off duty cop, helped out, especially the latter."

"Incredible." Sheldon stated.

"Overcoming that fear and then being able to survive that encounter, actually made it easier to tell Penny how I felt and I think my standing up to 'Goliath' if you will, made me seem even more attractive to her." Leonard concluded.

"Now I understand the ease of your conquest. In a similar way that male birds display bright plumage or horned male such as the moose, elk or ram, butt heads for the opportunity for copulation with their female counterparts, your reckless display of new found courage made it possible for Penny to become engrossed with you." Sheldon remarked.

"Believe me, Sheldon; there was nothing easy about it when you consider how much of my past I had to overcome in those few seconds. My parents', especially my mother's, domineering nature, the constant bullying I endured when I was younger and my past failed relationships with women just seemed to make me realize I wasn't going to take it anymore. I was prepared to go down fighting if necessary, even with no hope with winning a physical altercation with that specimen." Leonard explained.

"And as David won his battle with Goliath, that put him on the road to ruling the Kingdom of Israel, so you now are on your way towards achieving the Kingdom of Penny." Sheldon stated.

Leonard was taken aback; he had never known Sheldon to refer to Bible references in their conversation.

"What?" Sheldon looked at him quizzically.

"I've never known you to use Bible references in our discussions." Leonard clarified staring at him with a strange expression across his face.

"I don't. However, you brought up the reference to the Biblical Goliath. That plus the fact that many years of Bible School will subliminally plant a seed even in this highly evolved brain. It was beyond my control to absorb the knowledge." Sheldon explained.

"So where do you go from here with her?" Sheldon inquired based on the recollection that after a first successful date with Penny last year, it eventually resulted in no meaningful pairing beyond simple friendship soon after.

"Well I certainly don't intend to repeat the mistakes I made in snuffing out the embers of last year's first date. We've gotten off to a much better start and the embers are hotter this time around. I plan to stoke the embers this time rather than snuff them out." Leonard stated as he thought of an idea that would perhaps be a nice follow up to last night's outing.

"Yes, it seemed you strangled 'Schrödinger's Cat' last year. Looks like you're on to cat life number two!" Sheldon remarked.

"Believe me I'm going to give this life a lot more care." Leonard stood up and went to grab his jacket from his bedroom.

"Look, I've got to go out for a bit, but I'll be back soon." Leonard informed to Sheldon.

"Alright, I'll be here watching Dr. Who and then I'll be heading for the shower. Remember we've going out to see _**Star Trek**_ with Koothrapali and Wolowitz_**.**_" Sheldon replied as he grabbed the TV Remote and clicked on the monitor in preparation for his show.

"Oh yeah!" Leonard remarked with disappointment. In all the excitement of preparing for last night's date with Penny, he had forgotten he had committed to seeing the new installment of this particular iconic science fiction genre. Even though he knew Penny would be working later on, he didn't feel like going out with the guys, at least not today. He wanted to follow up with Penny and ensure that the initial euphoria would evolve into a more stable and durable afterglow. After putting on his jacket, Leonard grabbed his keys and opened the door.

"Don't you want to know where I'm going?" Leonard asked Sheldon.

"No, it's time for _**Dr. Who**_. Goodbye." He replied curtly.

With that, Leonard closed the door and headed downstairs.


	2. Breakfast

Just after 8:00 Penny's eyes opened to see the sunlight glowing behind her bedroom's window's drawn shades.

Slowly she rubbed her eyes and sat up with her elbows supporting her upper frame. She leaned back into bed and stretched a good stretch.

_That felt so good!_

As she settled for a moment, she smiled as she recalled last night and the breakthrough hers and Leonard's relationship had attained. All the fears and hesitation about whether or not to declare to each other how they felt seemed so foolish and so extraordinarily wasteful it seemed as if two other people had inhabited their bodies and were finally discarded last night.

A new Penny and Leonard had emerged.

Sitting up and pushing back her bed sheets, she slipped on her slippers and headed towards the bathroom. She decided to quickly shower and then have breakfast before taking care of some apartment cleaning before she had to prepare herself for work later on. Her shift would be from 2 to 10:30 tonight. She figured she could probably get some rest just before noon and get changed into her uniform by 1:00 p.m.

The warm shower engulfed her and she felt so good to have the water warm her body and wake the muscles up to a new day.

As she bathed, she thought about talking with Leonard and discussing with him plans for tomorrow since it was her regular day off. Maybe they could go to the beach or take a walk or have a nice post afternoon lunch. He did owe her a meal after all since he had attained a free on in light of the unpleasant and unexpected confrontation with her ex-boyfriend, Kurt.

_What a gigantic asshole he is!_ Penny thought.

She decided not to dwell on the negative and got back to thinking about how Leonard had declared how he truly felt about her, how she was always in his thoughts and had been so afraid of her reaction to him telling her his feelings.

Likewise, she reflected it was similar for her. Every day, she thought about Leonard. No, more than that, he was in her thoughts just about all the time. Here was a man whom she cared about that in return did not ask for any sexual compensation for his time with her. Of course Penny knew that he longed to make love to her and she did also long to culminate their relationship, which hadn't happened because unfortunately that menace of an ex had derailed to what she was hoping would be night of passionate love making in her apartment.

Penny then came to the conclusion that last night's postponement would be this morning's culmination. She would get some sexy underwear on; cover it up with old clothes she normally wore around her apartment. Briefly she would go over to Leonard and Sheldon's apartment and ask Leonard to come over and once inside she would seduce him in a manner that would make this Saturday a one to remember for all time to come.

Finishing up quickly, she dried off, got her garments on, put some make up on and headed towards the front door. Before she had placed her hand on the knob, a knock came from the other side.

She peeked in the door's peephole and saw Leonard's face eagerly awaiting her emergence.

She smiled as she turned the doorknob and opened the door.

"Good morning Penny!" Leonard exclaimed as he saw her face. His heart skipped a beat from the excitement of knowing that she loved him as much as he did her.

"Good morning my sweetie!" she declared as she lifter her arms to embrace him and landed her lips on his mouth and their bodies molded into one.

As they kissed they drank in each other's cup of passion overflowing with energy, excitement and delight. As they continued kissing, Penny had caused Leonard to back up slightly that she heard him back into something. Breaking their kiss, Penny peeked over Leonard's shoulder to see a cart full of breakfast.

"Wow! Sweetie, this looks great! Did you make this!" she remarked as he stepped out of her way to reveal a tray covered with two plates full eggs, bacon and sausage, plus additional plates of fruit, bread and some muffins, accompanied by two glasses filled with orange juice.

"No, I didn't. I got the idea to prepare you breakfast, so I went to a donut shop, bought some muffins and then went to Denny's where I ordered pretty much the rest. Oh! The juice, fruits and toast I prepared here in our apartment. I kept the food warm in the oven and then got this cart out, covered it with a white sheet to make it look nicer and umm, here I am!"

"That is very sweet and thoughtful of you!" She exclaimed as she gave him another kiss on the lips.

"Thank you for that kiss." He chuckled and smiled as would a little boy. "Well, before it gets cold, can I come in and serve you breakfast?" he asked after her thank you kiss.

"Oh, yes, come on in!" she replied as she stepped to the side and allowed him to roll the cart into her apartment.

"Where would you like to eat at?" He asked her.

"Oh, at the table by the window, I've got to cleanup my stuff off the sofa." She replied.

"Great!" Leonard proceeded to start laying down the food on Penny's dining table. As he put everything down, he suddenly he discovered he had forgotten a couple of things.

"Oh, great!" he exclaimed disappointingly in his failure to remember two important things.

"I forgot the cutlery and the napkins."

"Oh, don't worry, I've got that covered." Penny exclaimed as she went to the kitchen drawers and retrieved the necessary sets for both of them and fetched a few napkins out of the holder on the counter.

"You hungry?" Leonard asked.

"Hmmm hmmm!" she replied as she sat down at one side, Leonard on the other.

"Cheers!" he said as he raised his glass to hers and a mild clinking of glass kicked off their first breakfast together as a couple.

They soon delved into their meal. Leonard had cut up some apples, bananas and some nectarines and placed in one bowl. Along side were bran, blueberry and cranberry muffins in another. Next to them was a plate with cut up wheat toast. Finally, each of their plates contained a hearty meal of eggs, sausage and bacon.

Penny dived right into the meal, beginning with fruits and muffins. Leonard ate some toast and went right into his main dish.

"Mmmm!!" exclaimed Penny, "These are good, so juicy and tart sweet!" She had just bitten into the nectarine slices.

"Well I'm glad you like them!" he replied.

"I haven't had a home prepared meal since Nebraska!" she explained.

"Well, it's a combination of outside and inside food." Leonard added.

"Thank you!" Penny exclaimed as she reached and grabbed his hand and squeezed it.

"You're very welcome but remember I still owe you dinner." He said.

"Oh no!" Sweetie, please this is good, you've done more than you needed to." She remarked.

"Nevertheless, next time dinner is on me. I won't take no for an answer." He finished.

"Alright, let's not argue. Let's enjoy this." She said.

For the next 20 minutes, they ate to their hearts content. All that was left were a few pieces of toast, a couple of muffins and a couple of slices of fruit. Penny felt thirsty and went to her refrigerator to get a couple of cold bottles of water. Handing one to Leonard, they opened them up and drank nearly all of them.

"Wow, I didn't realize how thirsty I was!" Leonard stated.

"That would be the sausage and bacon. It's got a lot of sodium that will make your body crave water." She explained.

"That would be the process of Osmosis." Leonard began.

"Water will move in the direction where there is a high concentration of solute and hence a lower concentration of water. Salt is a solute and draws water in its direction. That is why you get thirsty after eating something salty." He concluded at the same time as he saw her with a semi-blank look on her face.

"Sorry." He stated semi-embarrassed at displaying his intellect and watching his love not seem to have a clue.

_Why do I do that?_ He chided himself.

Penny saw him kind of draw into his shell a little bit. She was a little mad at herself for not showing a little more understanding of what he was trying to explain. In his own way, it was a way of showing off to her to demonstrate he was intelligent. However, to Penny, by now, he had shown more than intelligence in winning her heart.

"Sweetie, don't be embarrassed by showing off your intelligence. I know that salt makes you thirsty; I just don't remember that it's called Osmosis. Besides, it's not your intellect that I only fell in love with you for."

"Really?" he said with a smile returning to his lips.

"Yes, really!" she answered and she took his hands and gently kissed them.

"Ok, let's take care of these dishes and put them in the washer." She quickly shifted gears.

"Oh, okay, let me help you." He added.

"It's okay, sit on the sofa. It will only take a minute." She replied as she got up and took all the utensils and dirty plates to the kitchen counter and began rinsing them and then placing them in the dish washer.

Leonard stood up and walked to the sofa and stretched out a bit while rubbing his stomach to indicate how good the meal had been. Closing his eyes and opening them he looked over to Penny and it seemed so incredible that he was sitting here in her apartment and knowing that they belonged to each other. Once again, he smiled as he closed his eyes.

As Penny, placed the last of the utensils in the dishwasher and closed its door, she looked over at Leonard and saw that he had leaned back and had one hand on his stomach and one hanging down by its side. He seemed to be asleep. Looking at her wall clock, it was just past 9:00 a.m. and it would be a few hours before she needed to be ready for work.

_I think this is a good chance as any to do make my move._

She went over to the window by the dining table and she drew the shades to darken the living room. As it darkened, even with his eyes closed, Leonard noticed the sudden absence of light, so he opened his eyes to see what its cause was.


	3. Morning Dessert

He saw Penny's silhouette at first, then focusing clearer he saw her eyes were very wide open with a sultry and seductive look while moving towards him as though a cat would as it came closer to its prey. Then she moved around the part of the couch on the opposite side of where he sat. She lifted her hand up to the back of her hair and she pulled off the ring that held it in a pony tail. Her golden hair fell on her shoulders and she gently shook her head to make her mane clearly observable. With another move of her arms and hands she took the bottom of her t-shirt and moved it up towards her chest and through the neck hole revealing a reddish orange bra which accentuated her glorious breasts.

As she tossed the t-shirt away, Leonard noticed that his heart was pounding, his mouth was dry and his eyes were wide open, pupils dilated to their maximum capacity.

_Oh my God! This is really going to happen isn't it?_ He asked himself. _Guess Sheldon pegged her right as a big old 5!_

"Penny" he whispered.

She quickly bent over to place her finger on his lips to silence him.

"Shhh!" she ordered him to be quiet.

Once more she stood straight up and with a smile she pulled down her shorts to reveal the same colored panty and drop dead gorgeous legs that supported her whole frame. She bent over once again and this time in a feline fashion her hands reached for the couch as her legs then joined them in placing her whole body over him. She then lowered herself to plant the sultriest, wettest and sweetest kiss on his lips. Her heart was on fire, pounding out blood to every corner of her body.

Leonard could feel the warmth of her lips as they joined his as their mouths became one. After a few more seconds, she released him and stared down at him.

"Leonard." She whispered.

"Penny!" he replied.

"I love you and I want you. No tequila shots, no lime, no salt. Just you and me. Make love to me!" She whispered and then kissed him again on his lips, followed by several more to his cheeks, ears and neck.

She pressed his body on top of his and Leonard placed his hands on her shoulders then lowered them caressing her back. Her skin was so smooth and warm and inviting him to join her in the timeless ritual of human lovemaking.

"Take me now!" She commanded in a hard whisper.

"I love you too Penny. I want you so badly!" he replied and then proceeded to kiss her neck and reached for the back of her bra, unhooking the bra released Penny's luscious breasts to his mouth. Penny moaned softly and closed her eyes while lifting her head back to enjoy the feel of his lips and tongue on her breasts and nipples while his hands caressed her lower back and made their way to her still covered buttocks.

As he drank her in, Leonard removed his glasses and placed them on the table besides the sofa. Penny then lowered her head and rained several more kisses on the top of his head while he made her moan some more as her breasts were taken into his mouth. She lifted her head and leaned it back. Her eyes closed and her mouth open in sheer exaltation while Leonard continued to immerse himself in her breasts and kisses to her stomach.

"Let's go into my room." She said to him.

For a few moments they paused as Penny lifted herself and pulled Leonard up to him. With only one article of clothing left, she decided that it was time for his body to be exposed to her. As she kissed him on his mouth, she pulled his sweat jacket off and then pulled his t-shirt over his head and arms. She then paused to embrace him and feel his hot manly skin next to her supple and soft one. By now their breathing was racing along with their hearts.

Briefly they separated so Leonard could remove his shoes and socks. Then they kissed and embraced again while she undid his belt buckle, then unzipped his pants and reached in to feel the full engorgement of his manhood. She bit her lip as she looked at Leonard, reaching over to kiss him; she played with his organ as she continued to take both his pants and his boxers off in one fell swoop.

Her touch was sheer heaven an ecstasy that he had never known before with any woman he had been with. All the others had seemed so mechanical but with Penny, the emotional attachment the difficulties and obstacles that they both faced and overcome to reach this moment made it all the more delightful and meaningful.

As he stood there completely naked, kissing Penny as she lifted her right leg to rub his side and with one hand she continued rubbing while the other was behind his neck as their mouths kept taking each other into higher states of ecstasy. He finally, pulled down her panty forcing her leg down and now she stood completely exposed to him. She kissed him again and he slid his hands all the way down the back around the curvature of her supple bottom. He rubbed them and then gently squeezed them while she continued groping his behind and rubbing him again. Then he used his hands to find his way into her own erogenous zone and found her warm, moist and inviting him to take their copulation to the next level.

Once again, Penny lifted her leg up feeling his hand receive it she pulled her other leg up and again was received by his other hand. There they both stood with Penny straddling Leonard in the middle of her apartment. She was amazed how strong he was since he wasn't that much bigger than her.

_Please don't drop me!_ She thought.

Almost immediately she heard him say in between kisses: "Don't worry, I won't drop you!"

"You're in good hands." He quickly followed up with.

She let out a soft chuckle and a smile and said: "Let's go into the bedroom now."

"Okay" Leonard replied.

She slowly put her legs down and grabbed his hands and started walking backwards around the sofa pulling him along with her towards her bedroom. She gulped and had to take in an extra breath just to keep herself moving. She was in state of delirious love induced ecstasy because of the sweet way that he touched and caressed her to make her feel special rather than use her as a sex toy as so many of her sexual encounters had been.

As they reached the bed room, her legs touched the side of the bed and before they went into the final phase of their love making, she quickly kissed him and said.

"Leonard, I love you. I give myself to you. Please make love to me?" she asked.

"Your wish is my command." He replied in a soft whisper.

With that she dropped into bed and pulled him on top of him but then before he could continue, she said: "Close the door, please." She pleaded.

It seemed strange for her to request it since they were only ones in her apartment.

"We're the only ones here Penny." He declared in a half puzzled tone.

"I know, but I don't want any one else to hear us, especially when I get going!" she whispered in a seductive tone that belied her sensual, do me know look.

_And believe me you'll know when I get going._

"Okay" Leonard replied as he reached for the door with his toes and kicked the door closed.

Within a minute they were deeply, physically, spiritually immersed in their love making that would last for almost all of the rest of the morning.


	4. Awakening

By noon time it was getting warm in Penny's apartment and the air had been filled with electricity and unbridled heat as their love making reached its crescendo.

Soon, thereafter they had collapsed into each other's arms and bodies. Penny's head lay on top of Leonard's. She could hear his heartbeat; a semi-rapid one that had calmed down significantly from the climax of their morning together. She could feel his hand on her left shoulder which he would occasionally use to caress the tip of her shoulder or run it down a bit on her left arm.

_Leslie Winkle was right. You are a magnificent beast! _

She turned her head to kiss his chest and gave him a gentle squeeze.

"How are you doing my love?" she whispered.

Leonard, although exhausted, never felt more alive and his mind raced to try and remember every moment that they had just experienced.

"I'm trying to keep a mental picture of everything that just happened over the last few hours." He responded.

"I don't think I've ever been happier!" He continued.

"Neither have I!" Penny chimed in. She looked up at him and could see a grin and happiness that she had never before seen on anyone. As she continued to look up at him, he looked down and their eyes locked. She then reached up to give him a few soft kisses and said: "I love you and want to be with you, always."

Leonard closed his eyes and took the words, the moment, the past 24 hours to see if his brain could contain all the goodness that he had experienced in such a short time.

"Penny, I don't know if can be any happier than I am now. But I know that if I'm with you I stand a good chance of staying as close to this as I possibly can." He declared.

"My whole life I've lived almost like a side show freak. It's as if my life was lived behind a cage and you could only dream of living like those on the other side of the bars." He continued.

Penny listened to his words and felt sadness that he had never experienced life to the fullest possible.

"There have been times I've been let out of the cage to get a glimpse of what other people took for granted. But eventually, I knew that I had to return to the cage and lived my sideshow life."

"But when I saw you that day, remember? That day you were unpacking in this apartment. You looked so beautiful and were so nice to a couple of social misfits that I started planning as to how I could win your heart and your mind. If only I could do that, I wouldn't be able to escape from my lonely universe."

Penny turned to him to see a look of relief, a look of having escaped some sort of bondage. In her own way with Leonard, she had escaped her own seemingly vicious cycle of broken relationships. She was touched that he saw her for more than just T and A. However, she decided to respond with a bit of a tease.

"You sure about that Dr. Hofstadter? Are you sure you weren't _just_ trying to get into my pants?" Penny asked, followed by a sort of dirty look with a soft chuckle.

"No!" Leonard's answered but after he looked at Penny and saw that don't bullshit me look.

"Well, hey I figured if I won your heart and your mind, how your body could not follow after would defy explanation." He said with a smile.

"Dr. Hofstadter, I am shocked to think that you could have such thoughts about such a sweet and innocent young girl like me!" She said tongue in cheek.

"Penny, you're definitely sweet but innocent? After what I experienced this morning with you; far from it being the latter!" He replied in half mocking tone.

"You dog!" She slapped him on his right arm. He responded by grabbing her and holding her closer to him still.

"It would be nice to stay like this all day, don't you think so?" He asked her.

"Yeah, it would be terrific. You are the one man that I could spend the whole day like this with. Nobody else has come close. Everyone else it was mostly 'Wham Bam, Thank You M'am!'" She countered. "Unfortunately, I've got to start getting ready for work soon."

Penny was disheartened that this moment would end soon. Because you never knew what the next day would bring and she was an expert with uncertainty. No other man had done what Leonard had done, stay with her in bed after love making. In the past, it had been either meaningless or if it was someone steady like Kurt, he had either fallen asleep or had somewhere to go or something to do besides stay with her.

"Bummer!" Leonard remarked.

"Hey, I gotsta pay de beels you know!" She remarked with a half mocking Caribbean accent.

"Ain't that the truth?" He agreed.

Leonard looked at Penny's alarm clock, it read 12: 27 p.m. He knew that soon this great moment and this wonderful time that had transformed his life would have to be interrupted by her work schedule. At least now he had another day to look forward to with Penny and that made his heart content on a level never before experienced in his life. Turning his mind to the subject of work, he knew that Penny did not want to be a waitress for the rest of her life. He knew that she wanted to become an actress and make a very good living to secure her future. As far as he knew, she was going to try out for the role of Roxane in this upcoming Cyrano play in Burbank, so he asked her a question before he knew she would have to leave for work.

"I was just thinking as to when the auditions for Cyrano start?"

Penny was taken aback for a moment as to the suddenness of the question.

"Umm, I think in about two to three weeks." She replied. "Why?"

"Well would you like me to read with you? I could play the part of both Christian and Cyrano and help you practice." He explained.

"Sweetie, I still have to audition. There's no certainty that I'll get the role."

"Well if you start preparing now, and practicing, memorizing; I don't think there is anyway that you could not nail that part?" Leonard stated.

"Well is it two or three weeks from now?" He asked again.

"I think it's closer to two." Penny asked curiously, he had never known Leonard to be this interested in her aspiring acting career.

"Why are you all of the sudden interested in my acting?" she queried.

"Well, for one thing, it was your interest in getting this role of Roxane that started the ball rolling and got us together. Secondly, you've told me how you wanted to be an actress many times, plus all the money you've spent on acting classes and I know you don't want to spend the rest of your life working at the Cheesecake Factory. Besides, if you think Sheldon is particular about his burger in the present, imagine 30 years from now!" Leonard explained.

Penny pondered for a moment the scene of her as a graying 50 plus year old woman having to still deal with Sheldon over his paranoid method of ordering food.

"That would be a horror beyond description having to deal with Dr. Whackadoodle as a waitress into my fifties." Penny exclaimed.

"My point exactly!" said Leonard.

"You can help me prepare for the audition." Penny asserted.

"How about tomorrow?" Leonard asked.

"Tomorrow? I don't know I still got to get this placed picked up and do some laundry."

"It's okay. Look. When you get up take care of your apartment and personal business. Let's say around 3:00 I'll take you to the movies, we have dinner then come back here and we can start a run through the play." Leonard offered.

"That sounds good. I bookmarked a couple of places on line where I can pretty much print out the entire dialogue of the play. I can either do that tonight or first thing tomorrow morning." She said.

"Great!" Leonard exclaimed.

"Well sweetie, I'm sorry to say I've got to get ready for work." She said sadly yet she was very happy that he wanted to help her succeed and improve her financial standing by helping her become an actress. His love wasn't just about getting her into bed. He had already achieved that with her consent. Now he wanted to do more for her than just simply being with her.

"I'll get dressed." Leonard commented who was also sad he had to say goodbye to her until tomorrow but was extremely content that she had accepted his offer to help her prepare for her audition. Her happiness mattered more to him than anything now.

"Here's something to remember me by." Penny stated before he could start getting dressed.

She pulled him back and pressed his body on top of hers and gave him several slow and warm passionate kisses to send him off by.

As they finished they proceeded to dressing quickly. Penny headed to her bathroom to put on her face and brush her hair and look presentable to the customers she would be waiting on in just over an hour. At the same time Leonard used Penny's bedroom mirror to straighten out his hair.

"Oh! Sweetie! Don't worry about the dishes I'll get them back to you tomorrow, okay?" Penny called from the bathroom.

"That's fine!" Leonard half yelled back to her.

As they finished, she came out and walked over to him and planted another kiss on his cheek, followed by one on his lips. He stuck out his elbow and she put her arm through it.

"Can I walk you to the door me lady?" Leonard stated in a chivalrous tone and a smile on his face.

"You may!" Penny giggled and leaned her head to rest it on his shoulder. Then they proceeded to the apartment's front door. As Leonard reached for the door knob their solitude was broken by the familiar Sheldon Cooper knock.

Knock, knock, knock "Penny!" Knock, knock, knock "Penny!" Knock, knock, knock "Penny!"

Leonard and Penny looked at each other in semi-exasperation because they both had been on the receiving end of that knock countless times.

Leonard turned the knob and opened the door just before Sheldon could continue his irritating knock.

"Oh! Leonard! There you are! I was wondering what had happened to you. So I figured I would begin here at your new girlfriend's apartment." Sheldon stated. "My logic and powers of deduction astound me once again." He concluded.

"Yes Sheldon, I'm here. What is it?" Leonard asked.

"Well what took you so long I thought your breakfast together would only take about an hour or so?" He asked.

"Well, Sheldon, we ate, we talked and we got busy!" Penny exclaimed before Leonard could inject his answer.

"Before Noon?!" Sheldon clamored in semi-disbelief.

"What's so shocking about having sex in the morning?" Penny asked surprised.

"Well, human copulation is an extensively stressful physical, cardiovascular and chemical activity, when done at nighttime the logical progression is for the body to rest immediately and a well 8 hour time period of recovery is both recommended and prudent. I'm surprised you are not both are still in bed recuperating the rest of the day." Sheldon explained.

"Its okay, Sheldon, we rested a bit." Penny remarked always amazed as how Sheldon could take the emotional and physical and turn it into a generic, sterile declaration on the behalf of science.

"I don't see how it's sufficient to keep you both on your feet at the present time."

"Well, I've got work where I can get coffee to get me through the day. I'll crash tonight." She concluded.

"And since I don't work today I can go into my bed room and rest before we go out later on with Raj and Howard." Leonard stated.

"One question though." Sheldon uttered.

"What is that?" Both Leonard and Penny asked together.

"How come there wasn't a tie hanging from your door knob?" Sheldon looked at Penny in a puzzled way.

"I'll let you explain that one sweetie, I've got to run! I'll see you tomorrow afternoon?" Penny asked as she gave Leonard a peck on the cheek and Sheldon a pat on his shoulder.

"I'll be over around 3:00." Leonard replied.

"Okay. Bye!" She said as she headed down the stairs.

"Well?" Sheldon asked again.

"Ties are hung outside the bedroom door where one is engaging in sex not on the outside of the apartment door." Leonard explained.

"And since there was no one in the apartment but us I didn't need to warn anybody and secondly I wasn't wearing one prior." He added.

"Huh!" Sheldon snorted.

"Now, please, let me go get some rest so I can be rested when the guys get here okay?" Leonard pleaded.

"Alright, but I must show you the preliminary findings of the crossing of the various comic book universes I talked to you about a couple weeks back." Sheldon exuded gleefully.

As they reached the door, Leonard could sense that he wouldn't get any rest before having to deal with Sheldon the rest of the day. But it was okay, because he had another day to look forward to with Penny and that was one mathematical formula Sheldon would never be able to decipher.


	5. The Stress Test

Luckily for Leonard, Sheldon had not progressed to far down the road with his Comic Book Multiverse Hypothesis to keep him up for a very long time.

By 1:30 Leonard was able to lie on his bed and fall asleep for awhile. It felt so good to finally rest.

A sweet, tantalizing and gradually erotic dream of Penny was torn asunder by a familiar sound.

Knock, knock, knock "Leonard!" Knock, knock, knock "Leonard!" Knock, knock, knock "Leonard!"

"Oh, God, Noooo! Go Away!!" Leonard clamored.

For Sheldon Cooper, PhD it seemed Leonard was having a nightmare and might be in trouble. He quickly opened the door and burst in.

"Leonard are you alright?" he said.

Leonard quickly turned around and buried his head in his pillow, followed by him lifting it and turning back to Sheldon he cried:

"What part of 'go away' did you not understand?" he questioned.

"I heard you exclaim it but I thought you were engrossed in a nightmare, so I rushed in to offer my assistance and prevent you from getting hurt." Sheldon explained.

Leonard gazed at him with that 'what planet are you from?' look.

"No Sheldon you got it wrong, the nightmare began _after_ I woke up!" He cried.

"Sarcasm right?" Sheldon asked.

"You're getting better! I'll give you that." Leonard exclaimed.

Leonard moved from a prone position to a sitting one. Rubbing his hair a couple of times, he looked up at Sheldon whom remained standing there gazing at him.

"Koothrappali and Wolowitz are here." Sheldon clarified.

"I'll be right out."

As Sheldon walked out of his room, Leonard strolled behind him and went to the bathroom. After washing his face and hands, he went back to the bedroom to change clothes for the remainder of the day. As he put the worn clothes into the hamper, he could still smell Penny on him.

_She smells so good and she is a lioness in bed! I am truly a lucky man!_

Proceeding to get into his fresh clothes he then combed his hair and went into the living room. There Sheldon was on his laptop while Raj and Howard stood there with grinning faces that soon gave way to wild 'Whoop! Whoop! Whoop!' by Howard and a rare and strange embrace from Koothrappali.

"Dude you are so awesome!" Raj said.

Howard came to Leonard and with a look of awe bent his knees and began bowing at his feet.

"I am not worthy!" Howard kept repeating over and over again while Raj kept holding on to him as though he was hugging the Rosetta stone.

"Would you two please knock it off!? What is wrong with you two?!" Leonard cried.

"I'll have to agree with Leonard, he is neither a deity nor the second coming of Jesus Christ, so there is no sense in bowing before him." Sheldon chimed in.

"Man, what do you mean? We are in the presence of a 'Love God!'" Howard explained.

Leonard's face contorted in disgust because for Raj and Howard, especially the latter, bedding Penny was a frustrated dream that he would never realize.

"Leonard, you have achieved one of the highest planes sought by nerds. Scoring with a beautiful woman!" Raj explained with a smile that didn't show any signs of abating anytime soon.

"He's right." Stated Koothrappali. "In one year you have had sex with Leslie Winkle, Dr. Stephanie and now Penny! Dude in three relationships, you have had three scores. You are batting a thousand!" he continued.

"Gee, I wonder who told you both what happened." Leonard mockingly stated as he looked over at Sheldon.

_There aren't any secrets in my life anymore!_ _Thank you Sheldon!_ Leonard thought sarcastically.

As if by telepathy, Sheldon stopped typing on his laptop and turned around to see Leonard glaring at him.

"I simply answered their question 'Where is Leonard?'" and I responded by saying, 'Leonard is resting because he engaged in sexual intercourse with Penny this morning.'"

"After that 'you could hear a pin drop' as they say." Sheldon concluded.

Leonard shook off Raj's hug and stepped a bit towards Sheldon. Howard then stood up.

"It didn't occur to you to say, 'Leonard's in his room, he'll be out in a while.'" Leonard asked.

"No that would have been telling a lie and I don't lie!" Sheldon stated.

"Man, what are you so upset about? Raj is right you have achieved a plane only one in a million ever attains. So how good was she?" Howard asked with a leering look. Leonard would not insult Penny or their relationship by going into any details with a pervert such as Howard.

"I will not explain any details as to what happened. Penny is now my girlfriend and I will treat her with only respect. It would be beneath me and ungentlemanly to discuss our intimate moments." Leonard clarified.

"Oh, come on man! You're killing us here! We can feel the warmth of the flame but you won't let us see the fire?" Howard asked in frustration.

"That's right!" Leonard responded in singsong.

"I guess I'll have to make deductions based on your body language before I post on my blog." Howard stated.

This just confounded and infuriated Leonard. Howard was so sexually frustrated sometimes that he had to live vicariously through someone else. He also didn't understand how he could be so horny, especially after his several sexual encounters with Leslie Winkle and Mikaela, the prostitute he and Raj and had secured in Las Vegas a few weeks before.

"If you post anything about Penny, the only body language you'll have to read is this!" Leonard exclaimed as he moved toward Howard with a clenched fist aimed at the latter's face and nose.

"Got it?" Leonard asked.

Howard did not want to push the envelope any further. He had already been pummeled by Penny earlier this year and did not want a repeat performance with Leonard.

"Hey, man its cool! I was just kidding!" Howard said as he held up his hands in an attempt to placate Leonard's anger.

"Good, I will be checking your blog just to make sure." Leonard added.

"So, what are you guys going to do now that you and Penny are a couple?" Raj questioned.

"I guess we'll do 'couple' things like a movie once in a while, walks on the beach, picnic in the park, a drive up the coast, have _meaningful_ sex." Leonard explained with the emphasis on the last activity directed at Howard.

"What I mean dude, is what are you guys going to do that have things in common. You remember last year that you guys broke up after just one date!" Koothrappali stated.

"I'm not going to worry about that. We're going to take it one day at a time. Tomorrow for example I'm thinking of taking her to see _**Star Trek**_, then dinner and then I'm going to help her study her lines. She's auditioning for the _**Cyrano De Bergerac**_ play that opens this summer in Burbank." Leonard detailed.

"Wait a minute!" Howard cried. "I thought we were going to see that today, you know, just us dudes!" He continued.

"We are!" Leonard countered.

"Well, seeing a science flick with a girl is probably going to be a downer. You know how they can't seem to grasp anything that doesn't involve romance or cuddling and the need for every man to abandon his libido and subjugate to a motherly state of control." Howard explained, remembering how the couple of times he had gone and seen the proverbial 'Chick Flick" he had struck out miserably with his dates.

"Howard, we're going to see _**Star Trek**_, not _**Wolowitz' Dating Don'ts Trek**_." Leonard jabbed at Howard's soft underbelly.

"Besides, we've already seen Cyrano which is a romantic play. Now we get to see a more man oriented film. Remember it's all about give and take in a relationship." Leonard continued.

"Well for me it's they give and I'm ready to take." Howard said with a nod and body gesture that reassured him that his courting method was beyond reproach.

"Remind me again why you never had nor currently have a girlfriend." Leonard mockingly asked.

"Gentlemen I would like to give you our next viewing time options for the Star Trek Film: 5:00 and 5:30." Sheldon turned from his laptop after looking up the nearby movie theatre show times online.

"Five is fine with me." Raj responded.

"Me too." Howard said.

"Fine by me as well." Leonard joined in.

"Alright then, let us then proceed to 'boldly go where no one has gone before'" Sheldon exclaimed excitedly.

_You'd think he was going on a train ride_. Thought Leonard

With that, they guys headed towards the front door and proceeded to go downstairs and get into Raj's car and head off to see the film.

The guys had a great time at the movie theatre. Afterward, of course, Raj and Sheldon resumed their battle over which Star Trek film was the worst and which one was the best, including the recent film they had minutes before concluded watching.

Raj continued to argue that _**Wrath of Khan**_ was still the best but placed the new film second ahead of _**The Voyage Home**_, the film Sheldon had previously pushed as the best all time Star Trek Film. Now Sheldon argued that this was the best film generally speaking but of course, no discussion of a Trek film would be complete without him breaking down flaws in not only this film but all the previous ones as well.

As the guys attempted to recover from Sheldon's incessant critique, Raj drove towards Sheldon's and Leonard's apartment. They briefly stopped at the local pizza place to take home three pizzas; one without cheese for Leonard one vegetarian for Raj and an all inclusive for Sheldon and Howard. After that the evening was wide open for them to possibly play any number of games that they usually engaged in.

However, Leonard's mind turned to Penny and again was looking forward to being with and seeing her reaction to the _**Star Trek**_ film through her eyes. At the same time he wanted to help her with getting on track for auditioning for the _**Cyrano**_ production and although he had never had even come close to a script, he was willing to do the best he could to help his new lady succeed.

The night concluded after the guys had played a couple of hours of _Rock Band_. Leonard was tired and the previous night and this day's extracurricular activity with Penny had left him punch drunk and ready for an early retirement into bed. Normally, the guys would play about 4 hours.

By 11:00, Leonard said good night to his friends and retired to his bedroom. Getting comfortable he climbed into bed and quickly fell asleep with Penny on his mind.

Meanwhile, Penny had returned from work a little after 11:00 p.m. and had heard the guys' voices from inside Sheldon and Leonard's apartment. Normally, she more likely than not, she would have popped her head in to say hi to all of them. But tonight, she was dead tired and besides, more likely than not Raj and Wolowitz knew by now what had happened between her and Leonard. She wasn't in the mood to combat Howard's double entendres and weird leering looks while Raj could only nod, shake his head or give thumbs up.

Quietly she made her way past their apartment, unlocking the door she entered hers and quickly got changed and ready for bed. Once there she thought about how good it would be to see Leonard again.

_I wonder what movie we'll see tomorrow._

In a few minutes, she was fast asleep.


	6. Sunday

Sunday was a quieter day for Penny, Leonard and Sheldon. Leonard's morning would be uneventful. Rising at about 8 am, he made himself breakfast and went to his laptop to check his email and check any updates coming down the pipe at Cal Tech before both he and Sheldon returned to work on Monday.

After about an hour, he concluded his online browsing he noticed that the Rock Band equipment had not been put away. Surprising, since Sheldon was such a neat freak and compulsively overbearing when it came to putting things in their place. The only explanation Leonard had was that the three of them must have stayed way past midnight and only the sheer desire for bed overwhelmed Sheldon's compulsion to clean house.

Quickly, he put away all the guitars and controllers before Sheldon got up and started bemoaning the fact that the place was a disaster area.

Soon afterward, Leonard had showered shaven and dressed for the day. He figured he would read a book to kill some time and perhaps then afterward work on some formulas regarding string theory. By noon he had taken care of both activities and was soon greeted by a late rising Sheldon.

"How late or should I say, how early did you get to bed?" Leonard queried.

"I'd say it must have been about 2 or 3 in the morning before we all retired." Sheldon responded.

"That's unusual for you given to the fact that you're usually in bed no later than 10:30 most nights." Leonard stated.

"I know but we kept on playing and playing at Howard's insistence until I threatened to replace him as drummer." Sheldon explained.

"Well that would have done it!" Leonard exclaimed thinking to how when they had first purchased the game, Sheldon had been the drummer but he couldn't play to save his life. Howard then took over and had a much more natural rhythm. Sheldon was fine playing his guitar but the sheer threat of having him play Ringo, was enough to finally send Howard and Raj back to their respective homes.

Soon thereafter, Sheldon had eaten was by now lunch. Then went to shower and shave and get ready for the day. By the time, 3:00 arrived, Sheldon had been working on the comic multiverse formula, gone online, had called Stuart to discuss this new pet project and then proceeded to sit down and watch the Sci Fi Channel.

Over in her apartment, Penny finally arose almost at 10:00 a.m. After shower and breakfast, she cleaned up inside and then proceeded to do three loads of laundry for a few hours. She completed her tasks by emptying out the dishwasher and set aside Leonard's dishes and bowls he had brought over for breakfast the previous day. By 3:00 she was finished and waited for Leonard to drop by.

Just after 3:00, Leonard bade goodbye to Sheldon and briskly walked over to Penny's apartment and knocked on her door. Penny was in her kitchen when the knocking came. By now she could tell Leonard's much more conventional knock from Sheldon's quirky knock and name calling procedure.

"I'll be right there Leonard!" she called from across her apartment.

_Wow! She sounds excited and knows it's me. Things are looking good!_

When she opened the door, she beamed a smile and he beamed one right back.

"Hi sweetie!" she said to him as she combined her verbal greeting with a stride up to him, putting her arm around him she planted him a soft warm kiss on his lips.

Leonard hugged her back and kept her there for a moment to make the kiss last longer. How much nicer it was to greet her like this. He hoped that he could do this with her for the rest of his life.

"Hello there love!" he answered her as she pulled him inside and took him over to the sofa and sat down.

"How's your day been?" he asked.

"Well, it's been kind a busy but I'm done with stuff. By the way I have your bowls and dishes washed and dried. I'm so looking forward to going and seeing a movie with you." She said.

"Good, I thought that I would introduce you to another part of my world. You've played Halo and Paintball, but now I would like to take you to go see the new Star Trek movie." Leonard explained.

"Oh, yeah that's right they've been advertising that a lot lately. Some of my co-workers have seen it and they liked it a lot." Penny admitted.

"Great! So they're recommendations have made you lean towards seeing it, correct?" Leonard asked.

"Yeah! I mean I've only caught a few episodes over the years. So I'm looking forward to seeing it with my new main squeeze." Penny said as she went over and gave Leonard a little peck on the cheek as she put her hand on the opposite cheek.

"Thank you!" Leonard exclaimed as the touch of her hand and the warmth and moisture of her lips made his spine light up and make him tingle from head to foot.

She saw him smile and thought how cute he looked; like a bashful schoolboy receiving his first kiss. She then proceeded to her bedroom and grabbed a light jacket and put it on as she grabbed her keys. Then she took Leonard's hand as he walked her out of her apartment.

Penny felt happy and secure that the evening with Leonard would be dynamic. She liked talking with him because as smart as he was, he wasn't condescending and also listened to what she had to say. At the same time, now that they were together, she liked him to open up and tell him about the troubles he had undergone that had made him the man he was and the man he was now.

Within a few minutes they were headed out the door, stopping at Leonard's briefly to drop off his dishes and then downstairs to Leonard's car. After Penny had driven two nights before, he offered to drive this time. He drove her to same theatre that he and the guys had gone to see the movie the day before. Leonard looked forward to seeing the film with Penny and then talking about it without having to worry about ranking with Star Trek film was the best afterward.

A couple of hours later, the film was done and they exited the movie theatre.

"So how did you like it?" Leonard asked anxiously.

"Wow! It was great! I didn't think Star Trek could be that good." Penny exclaimed.

"Yeah, well they got good actors to portray the roles and with a good story and the special effects rounding it out, it makes for good entertainment." Leonard said.

"You're so right; a film with no plot and bad actors can't be helped by special effects no matter how good." Penny agreed.

"Listen, where would you like to go have dinner?" Leonard asked.

"Well I kind of chose last time and we ran into Kurt." Penny stated half embarrassed that her choice had led to a confrontation with her ex beau.

"Well, alright, I've got a place in mind that we can go to and I think you might like it." Leonard stated with a grin on his face. He seemed to be planning the evening now with some kind of romantic outcome by the expression on his face.

"Leonard, what do you have in mind?" Penny queried.

"You'll see!" he said as he held out his hand as she put hers in his and off they went to a destination Penny knew nothing about.

About 20 minutes later, they arrived outside a little café about 2 miles from their apartment building. Finding a fortunate parking space, Leonard maneuvered his car and soon was on the other side helping Penny out of the car. It was growing dark and the street lights outside the restaurant were just coming on as Penny looked up to see the sign reading: Bistro Delight.

"What type of restaurant is this?" Penny asked.

"Sort of a smorgasbord; they've got a little bit of everything here. But the food is just one part of the atmosphere." Leonard said.

"Really, what have you got in store for me?" she asked again.

"You'll see."

Inside the restaurant, they again were greeted by a hostess who led them to their table. The place had quite a few patrons but it was not yet full. Sitting down, they looked at their menus to see a little bit of Italian pasta dishes, fish dishes, hamburgers and chicken, turkey and deli style sandwiches.

"You were right sweetie; they do have a little bit of everything." Penny chimed.

"I told you." Leonard responded.

After checking their menus a waiter came up and introduced himself.

"Good evening my name is James and I'll be your waiter tonight. Have you had a chance to look at your menu?" he asked. James was about six feet tall, with dark hair and blue eyes with a friendly face that put his customers at ease and in the mood to enjoy their visit to the bistro.

"Not long enough." Leonard stated.

"Well, may recommend some appetizers, we have the zucchini with cheese as well as some chicken wings with either ranch or barbecue sauce as a dipping sauce. Also we have a fruit appetizer which includes grapes, strawberries and orange slices."

"The fruits sound good." Penny said. "Please bring us that."

"Very good, what would you like to drink tonight?" James asked.

"I think water would be good. The popcorn from the movies made me thirsty." Penny continued.

"And for you sir?" he directed his question to Leonard.

"Water's good for me too."

"Ok, I'll be right back with your waters and if there is anything you need, please let me know ASAP." James stated.

"Thanks." Leonard stated.

Penny studied the restaurant and noticed it to have lots of pictures of singers and bands. None of them she recognized. But it seemed that the owner, whoever it was, had a good relationship from the autographs he had received. The tables all were in a square shaped U-shaped formation around a clearing in the middle of the floor with a raised stage of about a foot, foot and a half behind it the empty space. Taking a second look it seemed that the cleared area's floor was different from the rest of the restaurant's floor. As a matter of fact it looked like a dance floor.

"They have a dance floor here." Penny said quizzically.

"That's right." Leonard said in a sing song voice.

"They have dancing here?"

"That's right." Leonard repeated again in the same tone of voice.

"Well what type of band do they have?" Penny asked.

"It depends. Sometimes they have light rock, sometimes folk, sometimes international. Sometimes they'll even have tribute bands! I guess it depends on who's in town or around." Leonard explained.

"So are you going to ask me to dance?" Penny looked at Leonard with those beautiful blue eyes and a sexy look that betrayed her question as if she had said you better dance with me.

"Only for the slow ones, I'm not very good with fast ones." Leonard said half apologetically.

"Well, if you take me for a slow one. I'll show you to a faster one." Penny said.

"Well, not too fast because I'll look like a windup doll that has had a seizure with all my extremities ready to fly off into space." Leonard pleaded.

"Oh stop it! You will not!" Penny slapped at his hand as she let out a chuckle.

He quickly reached for her hand and then brought it to his lips and gently kissed them.

Penny seemed to blush at his tender and subtle display of affection for her. She returned the favor and kissed his hands soon thereafter.


	7. The Question

Within a few minutes they had their water and their appetizer. Leonard ordered a Pastrami Sandwich and Penny a chicken salad. Soon after that a lady stepped into the dance area and spoke up.

"Ladies and gentlemen, can I have your attention please." She stated on the microphone she had placed in front of her.

"Good evening. Welcome to Bistro Delight, thanks for coming out tonight. I am Barbara Lawson, the owner and host of tonight's entertainment." She said.

Some applause broke out.

"Thank you. Tonight we have a wonderful tribute band that specializes not in honoring a band. No, no, no. This band pays tribute to the King of Rock and Roll! Elvis Presley! They have their own style but they are remarkably true to the way Elvis sang them. I'm sure you'll enjoy. This is their second time with us and it is a pleasure to have them back. Please give it up for 'Change of Habit!'"

The band began playing just before the curtain was drawn back from each end and a 5 piece band began playing Elvis' Jailhouse Rock. The band kept a good beat and played tightly, there were no wanderings or bad notes discernable. Soon everybody was clapping and getting into the mood of fun filled musical night. When the song ended, the band began another song, this time they went with Hound Dog. Again, the band played a solid set. Penny was clapping along and was into the band's beat. Leonard could see that she was enjoying herself and made him extremely happy that he could bring this type of joy into her heart. By now a few patrons were joining into the dance floor and began to dance to the rhythms of the song. Penny then leaned over the table to communicate a thought.

"You know my folks love Elvis so I grew up with this music!" she stated in a louder than usual tone.

"When I was younger, they used to play it all the time in Nebraska." She followed up.

"I had an uncle who was a big Elvis fan too." Leonard now leaned over to speak to Penny.

Soon enough, the song was over and strong round of applause went up thanking their band for a very nice rendition of an Elvis Classic.

"Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen, we are 'Change of Habit' and we'd like to slow down things a bit and give you couple out there a chance to enjoy each other's company a little bit closer. This next song is from the second movie Elvis made, called 'Loving You.'"

The keyboardist of the band began with a piano intro and then the lead singer started singing.

"_I will spend my whole life through..."_

Leonard had hardly ever danced, maybe twice in his life but he wanted to take Penny now into his arms with this slow song and enjoy her breath and lips and body as they danced together for the first time. A bit nervous to do anything for the first time, he kind of gulped hard and proceeded to speak to her.

"Penny would you like to dance?" he asked.

"Of course, I would love to dance with you." She half whispered giving Leonard a very sultry, seductive look.

"_Loving you, just loving you_.

_Winter, summer, spring-time, too, _

_Loving you, loving you."_

They both stood up and went to the dance floor. As they arrived, he slid his arms around her lower back and brought his head to rest on her shoulder and she likewise did the same. Her body was warm and inviting as he did his best to take the dancing in and let his feet slowly carry them through the song. Penny had felt safe in Leonard's arms before but now it was as though the culmination of this weekend was complete. His confession of his love for her, how he had stood up to her ex-boyfriend, breakfast ready made for her, their incredibly delectable love making and their date tonight; their second in forty eight hours seemed too good to be true. However, she let it sink in and wash over her mind and body that Leonard was the one for her and she wished the time would come that they could be together forever formally. She never wanted to let go of this moment and wanted it to repeat itself over and over again for the rest of her life.

"_Makes no difference where I go or what I do. _

_You know that I'll always be, loving you."_

Leonard closed his eyes and just concentrated on Penny and the music's words that reflected his deep and undying love for her.

"Penny." He whispered.

"Yes?" She whispered back.

He moved his head back to make eye contact and she looked at him almost immediately and she could see how serious he was about what he was about to tell her next.

"_I'll be faithful I'll be true; _

_Always true, true to you."_

"I love you deeply. I want us to always be together. Would you marry me?" he asked without even thinking. His heart raced and he could barely realize what he had just asked of Penny. Yet it felt so right, albeit tremendously scary. He looked directly into her face like a laser beam.

_Did I just say that?_

"Would you please?" he asked again.

Her heart stopped for a moment and she couldn't breathe.

_Did he just ask me to marry him?_

"What did you just ask me?" she asked as her eyes focused intensely on his face to determine whether he was serious or not as to what he had just said.

"_There is only one for me, and you know who. _

_You know that Ill always be loving you."_

"I said would you please marry me?" He asked again.

_Didn't she hear me? Did I just ask it?_

It was wonderful to hear it but the suddenness and complete surprise overwhelmed Penny to the point she could feel her emotions bringing up tears to her eyes. She broke away from his hold and she brought her arms up to her cheeks and as the tears began to flow she covered her mouth with one hand. She wanted to be with him and it seemed that he read her mind. But somehow the wish for being together seemed to scary and the nearness of such a happening frightened her as much if not more than the desire to be with him. She thought that being together too soon would wreck laying down any foundation for long term happiness. Penny figured that it would be over before it started if they married now.

_Oh dear God! I am so confused _She thought to herself.

"Oh Leonard!" she softly said. Then she walked away with a quick step and headed out towards the front entrance.

"Penny!? Penny! Where are you going?" Leonard pleaded as she saw her walk away.

_What's wrong? Why is she upset? Damn! Why do I always blow a good thing?_ He cursed himself and hated the fact that he may have just destroyed the last two days.

Concerned that Penny would just walk away he headed toward the front door as well. But he caught himself and saw James, their waiter out of the corner of his eye.

"Listen, we have an emergency, could you please make our orders to go. Here's my card, please ring it up for us." Leonard said nervously as he reached for his credit card and handed it to the young waiter.

"Sure sir, no problem." James said.

"Please bring them outside." Leonard asked.

"Sure."

He then headed outside where he found Penny crying.

"Penny! Please what's wrong? I'm sorry if I've upset you. I just got lost in the moment. Don't you know how happy you've made me these last couple of days? Haven't I made you happy? I just want it to last the rest of our lives together!" He pleaded with her to make things as good as they were when they had arrived at the restaurant.

"Oh, Leonard, sweetie, you have made me happy, but I can't marry you now!" she responded.

Like a punch to his entire body, Leonard felt he had been dropped from the top of a tall building and all the wind and joy were brutally knocked out.

"Why? We love each other and two people in love with each other, more often than not get married!" He explained.

Penny saw his body freeze for a moment and his face go ashen white and she felt even worse to hurt him like this but she was scared that what they attained would be jeopardized by a premature marriage.

"I know, I know!" She sobbed.

"Then why are you pushing me away like this?" he pleaded with a crack in his voice. Leonard was desperate; he didn't want to lose Penny, not like this.

As the tears came up, she added.

"Leonard, I told you on Friday night that we had to take things one day at a time and now you ask me to marry you? Don't you know how you're just jinxing our whole future by jumping the gun by wanting us to get married now instead of later?" She said with a hope that he would realize that she was trying to do what was best for them now. After time when their romance had blossomed and things were more financially secure, then it would be time to get married.

"I am taking it one day at a time. Today, I asked you to marry me. But you just can't ask someone 'will you marry me?' and then get married the same day. It doesn't work that way. I love you. You have won my heart from the moment I laid eyes on you and you'll have it always. I want us to be together forever. _You_ said you wanted us to be together always. What better way to be together than for us to be married?" He said to her.

"I love you too but I don't want to get into something that at this point may not work out and then we'll end up apart and never being as happy as we are now. I don't want that! I want what we have now and I don't want to jeopardize it by rushing into something we may not be ready for. We're not ready for this! Leonard, please just take me home. Please take me home. Now!" she pleaded with him. They were getting nowhere fast and if this argument was taking its toll on their new found relationship; how could an untimely marriage not make things even worse.

At this time James came out with their dinner order and handed the card and food to Leonard. He signed his copy of the receipt and did his best to come up with a smile.

"Thank you James." Leonard said.

Sensing an uncomfortable situation, James took his copy and bid both Penny and him a good evening.

Leonard looked at her and saw that he would not win this argument and was sick to his stomach to see that she didn't want him that way, not yet anyway and that perhaps she was right As he put his card away in his wallet, he was even angrier at himself for jumping the gun and declaring where he wanted to go with their relationship.

"Alright Penny, I'll take you home. One last thing though and then I'll shut up. All life is jeopardy and I think our love is worth fighting for. You know how I feel and what I think. Let's go." He turned to go and she quickly followed with her fingers and hands wiping away the tears from a face that only a few minutes ago had beamed with happiness on the dance floor with Leonard

They got into the car and Leonard twisted the keys angrily as his car turned on. It was an eerily quiet drive back to their apartment building.


	8. The Summer Mistress

They walked quietly up the stairs not saying a word to each other. For Leonard it was like walking up a hundred flights of stairs instead of just 4. His heart weighed heavy and he felt out of breath. His mind kept replaying everything and he thought of himself as cursed, if there was such a thing that whatever happiness he found it was soon taken away.

For Penny, she had calmed down but she was terribly angry both at herself and with Leonard. She was angry at herself for spurning his proposal. She wanted so much to be with him always as she had told him but the bottom line was:

_I'm afraid!_

Then she was also angry at him for bringing up marriage when she knew and he knew that marriage for both of them at this time was out of the question. She glanced at him and saw how heartbroken he was. She was too.

As they finally reached their floor, they turned to each other.

"Would you like me to help you read your lines?" Leonard asked knowing against hope that it wouldn't be possible tonight.

"No, I'm not in the mood and I think it would be best that you don't help me at this point because it's just going to feel weird." She responded.

"Oh! Okay, if you change your mind, please let me know." He responded and he thought how awful that their relationship seemed to regress to a point worse than it had a year ago. It was just the place that he wanted to avoid at all costs. Yet, here he stood.

_I am going to grow old and bitter, become a Scooby Doo villain like Sheldon said and with no progeny. I'll die alone._

Her eyes were withdrawn and sad and Leonard wanted to kiss her so badly but he knew that she would never give him the chance.

"I will." She answered.

"Well good night." He said and withdrew to his and Sheldon's apartment.

"Good night." She watched him leave but she then turned and went into her apartment.

She felt awful and was angry that another relationship had seemed to die. She loved Leonard and that is what made it hurt even more than all the other relationships she had been in. She started to cry again and wiped her face to clean the burn from her eyes and nose. She then slowly changed into her night clothes and proceeded off to bed. The last two nights of blissful sleep seemed like a distant memory now.

Leonard was utterly dejected, placing the bag of food on the kitchen counter, he went straight to bed. He even didn't notice that Sheldon was not home. He was at Raj's apartment with Howard and Stuart expanding on his multi universe proposal and engaging in endless debate about possible outcomes in at least three comic book universes at the same time. It was not until 10:30, on schedule for his bed time that Raj had dropped him off back at the apartment building.

The next day for Leonard was horrible; he just went through the motions at work. The whole day seemed like a week. He was quiet and even Sheldon's incessant talking about a dozen different topics seemed to bounce off of him. Apparently, living with Sheldon seemed to program Leonard with the appropriate "Yes" or "That's good" comment placed at the right intervals provided with a shield from the inevitable question of "What's wrong?" coming from his roommate.

Penny's day off found her in bed most of the day. Moping around her apartment she ate some ice cream for breakfast with whipped cream as a chaser. She tried watching TV but as luck would have it the channel she turned to was playing one of the Elvis' movies, _**Loving You**__,_ with the King singing the song her and Leonard had danced to.

"Oh! God! No!" she half screamed.

She quickly turned it off and started to cry again. She crawled back into bed fell asleep for another couple of hours and pretty much stayed in a zombie state the rest of Monday.

By the evening Leonard had settled into his bed and stared at the ceiling thinking about Penny and how he needed to make things better again. However, he knew it would take some time. As hard as it was to resist, he needed to let a few days go by maybe even a couple of weeks.

_I don't think I can last that long! I better keep myself busy starting now!_

He quickly bolted out of bed and went to his white board to work on some formulas.

It was here where Leonard received the news from Sheldon that the Cal Tech University President wanted to meet with the latter the following morning, which of course began a long night for Leonard. Because of Sheldon's incessant curiosity to find out what the president wanted to talk to him about, he had gone over and woken up the president and his family well after midnight and then had come and woken up Leonard at two in the morning to discuss with him what the subject matter was about.

Sheldon's grant proposal about detecting slow moving magnetic monopoles at the North Pole he submitted to the National Science Foundation had now coincided with a last minute opening on the NSF Expedition to the Arctic Circle and thus began a debate by Sheldon as whether to go or not which drove Leonard crazy.

Over the next few days Sheldon debated until finally he announced one evening to the rest of the guys he accepted the invitation. Which led to a premature celebration thinking they would have a three month break from Sheldon; it was at this point that Sheldon asked them to go with him to the North Pole.

For Leonard this was not an easy choice. In light of the recent developments with Penny he figured the worst thing he could do was to leave and risk the chance he would not have any sort of future with her, friendship or otherwise. What if she moved on? What if she found somebody else? At this point, his thinking was it was a lifetime commitment or nothing. On the other hand, a three month stint could prove a blessing in disguise, a sort of cooling off period, no pun intended, with a chance to reconcile once he got back. When they all agreed to go, Leonard thought about telling Penny right away but he thought he should be tactical about when he would exactly break the news to her.

Penny, in the meantime, had immersed herself with reading and memorizing the lines from Cyrano in preparation of her audition in just under two weeks. No matter how hard to suppress thought of Leonard, it was of no use, this entire play reminded her of him and how they had come closer together because of it. Then one day, Sheldon came asking about the availability of the freezer at her work and that's when the hammer fell. She found out about the guys leaving for the North Pole for three months.

_Three months! Why is he going? Now?_

Penny was heartbroken and sick. Her head swam in a jumble of thoughts that the recent distance between her and Leonard could be made permanent by their impending separation. Then she thought what if there was an accident up there or a sickness or they were attacked by a polar bear; what if Leonard died and they did not resolve their current dilemma. Such a thought sickened her but she was scared to mention anything to Leonard. He had made the decision to go and as much as it saddened her, she could understand a little bit why he had decided to go; it was both prestigious for him as a scientist and time to get away from her. However, she did not want him to go, not now, not ever.

At this time it dawned on her that Leonard had a point. You couldn't ask someone to marry them and then get it done the same day. Marriage took time to prepare. She would rather have the outlook of being Mrs. Penny Hofstadter than taking it day by day and repeating their current set of circumstances. For her it was better to have the roller coaster ride of marriage with him than to have it apart. She decided to end this disagreement. She would talk with Leonard.

By now, the preparations were well under way. The guys had almost everything they needed to go on their expedition. Leonard for one was ready. Two nights before their departure, he felt anxiety over the upcoming trip. He talked to Sheldon about perhaps not going because of Penny, but of course, Sheldon with his rational thinking of breaking down to its basic components had convinced him that he should go. Yet a nagging thought prevailed and frightened him.

_What if I lose Penny, forever? What if I have already lost her?_

The thought was overwhelming and it robbed him of the capacity to breathe for a moment. He felt the walls of the apartment closing in on him. He felt a panic attack coming on for the first time in quite a while. He opened the front door and went up to the roof to get some fresh air and clear his head. He took some deep breaths and bent over to steady himself before standing straight back up.

"Dear God, help me, I don't know what to do!" he cried out as he looked up to the sky in total exasperation and bewilderment.

"I just can't live without her. How can I go away for three months and leave her?"

"Oh my God! What am I going to do?"

"I can't live without Penny!" he continued as he started to feel sweat and tears overtaking his body. His knees buckled and he knelt on the deck of the roof as he put his arms and hands behind his neck in a moment of complete and utter emotional desolation. Leonard began crying.

Unknown to him Penny had arrived a few seconds behind him. She had heard his apartment door slam as she was on the way over to talk to him and his running footsteps going up the flight of stairs. She had followed him to see what the matter was. Opening the door, she caught sight of his desperation and heard the words arising from his plight.

Tears welled up in her eyes to see how utterly lost he was without her but how unconditional his love was as well.

_How could I not be your wife?_

As her cheeks became moist from the tears that ran down them, she said to him

"I can't live without you too."

Startled, his head twisted to lay eyes upon her. She could see that he was perspiring and a tear had made its way down one of his cheeks as well.

"Penny!" he choked out her name.

She came over to him and knelt down and put her hands on his cheeks and she leaned into him and gave him the slowest, truest and sweetest kiss she knew how to. He closed her eyes and let the touch and tastes of her lips burn them into his soul. Then he reached out to her with his arms and embraced her as they continued kissing and breathing their very souls into each others mouths, and deep into each other's bodies.

"I'm sorry. Please forgive me for pushing you away." She whispered into his ear.

"I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have pressured you into such an important and life altering decision as marriage." He responded.

"Leonard, I know you love me. No one else ever has or ever will love me like you have shown. I can't risk losing you anymore." She informed him as she wiped away some tears and smiled at him in a way that made his being overwhelmed with happiness. She slowly stood up as he remained kneeling as she continued holding his hands in hers.

"So please ask me again." She stated as she continued smiling. She hoped that she wouldn't have to ask it again. In her heart she knew that it wouldn't be long before he realized the significance of her request.

Leonard took a moment to interpret her statement and his eyes went wide and the widest smile he had ever shown came across his face. Then he lifted his one knee up and kept the other one on the floor. Looking into her eyes he swallowed a gulp of nervousness and burned his gaze into her eyes.

"Penny, would you please do me the honor and give me the greatest happiness I could ever know. Would you please marry me?" He asked her and seemed as though the answer may not come but within 2 seconds he saw her smile grow wider and new tears cascaded down her cheeks.

"Yes, I will marry you Leonard Hofstadter." She nodded.

In an instant, he was up standing, taking her in a strong embrace they once again kissed and stayed this way for a few minutes. For Leonard it was sheer bliss to be hugging the woman that at one time seemed to have as much chance of being with as climbing Mt. Everest naked. He truly had never known happiness on this level. While for Penny, she had never known a love like Leonard's. If someone had told Penny she would ever be in the arms of a nerd accepting a proposal of marriage, she would have dismissed them as both psychotic and delusional. She had never known any man who had strived to be her friend first. By winning her heart and her mind, she had given herself to him in a way that no other feeling could top. She was happy, truly happy and safe in his arms. However, she knew that she must not only be his love but his inspiration. As much as it would hurt her and as difficult as it would be to bear for him, he needed to go on this expedition; it was important not only for him now, but perhaps to both of them in the long run.

Penny then broke the silence and their passionate kissing.

"I want you to go on your expedition first." She declared.

"You want me to go?" he asked confounded by her sudden declaration. They had agreed to share their life together and at the same moment she wanted him to go away.

"It's important. But please know that I'll be here waiting for you when you get back so don't worry. I'm yours and you're mine. And you're going to get the biggest hero's welcome when you return." She smiled slyly to emphasize the point of what he had to look forward to when the expedition concluded.

Realizing what she meant, he gave her another kiss and hug.

"You're lifted the weight of the world off my shoulders. Thank you." He responded.

"Before you go, I want you come to come down to help me practice my lines for Cyrano." Penny asked.

"Sure I will, I've missed out on helping you." He replied.

"Well, afterward, they'll be something awaiting you that Cyrano never got." She explained.

"What is that?" Leonard asked almost knowing what response she would give.

"Me." She said with her sultry, sexy eyes beckoning him to come down into her apartment one last time before his trip.

Once again, they kissed and they held on to each other as they proceeded down the stairs and into her apartment for one last night together. When they reached her living room, Penny gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

For about an hour, Leonard read the lines from the script while Penny recited them from memory. She looked like she was ready to go the audition right now. He was amazed at the emotion, depth and feel she was putting into the readings. In his mind, he knew that it would be very hard for play's decision makers not to choose her for the part.

When they finished, Leonard told her how impressed he was with her performance and that she was ready for the part.

"Only one thing you need to worry about is over confidence. It's always good to be a little nervous." He said.

"Thanks, I'm probably going to do two more practices before I go in." She explained.

"When is the rehearsal?" he inquired.

"The day after you leave for the expedition." She said rather sadly.

"Oh, I'm sorry again that I will miss it." Leonard said.

"Oh, don't worry if I get the part, there's two and a half months of rehearsal and we probably won't start until about the time you get back." She explained.

"Well I hope I get to see at least one performance when I get back." He said with a growing smile.

Penny wanted to remove any sting of the upcoming separation and she remembered that he had taken her out that night to share a romantic moment by dancing a slow romantic song with her. It was then she decided that they would make up for that premature end to their dinner evening.

"Stay right there. Please don't move." She said as she headed toward the far wall of her apartment.

"Why don't you want me to move?" Leonard asked, extremely puzzled.

Penny headed toward her iPod Stereo player, grabbing her iPod she quickly played with it until she arrived at the song she wanted to hear. Docking it back into the stereo she adjusted the volume. Then, a familiar piano intro filled the room. Elvis' voice began singing.

"_I will spend my whole life through..._

_Loving you, loving you..." _

She walked back to him and as she approached him, he slid both his arms around her waist while she put both of her arms around his neck and pressed their cheeks together, while beginning their slow dance.

"…_Winter, summer, spring-time, too, _

_loving you, loving you. _

_Makes no difference where I go or what I do. _

_You know that I'll always be loving you."_

She kissed his face and his neck while he quietly proceeded to reciprocate her tender actions. Quietly they moved back and forth behind the sofa and just immersed themselves in each other's embrace and kisses.

"_If I'm seen with someone new, _

_Don't be blue, don't you be blue. _

_I'll be faithful I'll be true; _

_always true, true to you. _

_There is only one for me, and you know who. _

_You know that I'll always be loving you."_

As the song ended, they stared into each other's eyes and kissed one more time. Penny then whispered into his ear.

"I want you so badly." She whispered with a warm, passionate breath.

"I want you also." He replied with a nervous utterance to go along with his pounding heart.

Proceeding from the living room into her bedroom, Leonard did not hesitate closing the door as soon as they were inside. They were finally happy and knew that one day they would be together officially as husband and wife. Tonight they would consummate their decision to eventually join together for as long as they both would live.


	9. Departure

Leonard and Sheldon's D-Day arrived along with Howard and Raj's. This was the day that began their three month journey to the North Pole. Their gear was packed. All items had been checked and rechecked by the hovering and obsessive to detail Sheldon. They had taken care of payments for rent, insurance and other monthly bills ahead of time. Penny would look over the apartment on the strict condition that she would not go into Sheldon's room. With their gear outside the apartment, they locked the door and were ready to head downstairs. Before they departed, Leonard decided he would see Penny once more and say goodbye a final time.

"I'm going to say bye to Penny." He told Sheldon.

"Alright, but remember we must leave in 10 minutes. Say your farewells quickly so we can proceed." Sheldon declared.

"I'll be right back." Leonard responded with a note of disdain since Sheldon's mind was all on the business at hand while he was still struggling with his anxiety over being separated from Penny.

Leonard knocked on the door and was quickly greeted by Penny.

"Hi love, good morning!" he said, noticing that although she was glad to see him, she was also sad in having to say goodbye for 3 months.

"Hi sweetie and it would be a better morning if you didn't have to go." She responded. She didn't know how she would be able to make the next 90 days speed up so he could come back that much sooner.

"I know, it's going to seem like forever." He said sadly.

"Just take it one day at a time and we'll be together again sooner than you think." She responded.

"I'll miss you and I love you my Penny." He said with a slight crack in his voice.

"I love you too and I'll miss you terribly." Penny responded and then she reached over and gave him a strong and long hug. She then moved her head and gave him a slow series of kisses.

"Good luck and Godspeed. Come back to me." Penny said

"Break a leg with your audition. I'm sure you'll get the part." Leonard said with a confidence tone to support her upcoming tryout.

"Thanks. I'll do my best." She replied.

He leaned over and embraced her one last time and kissed her sweetly.

"I'll be back. I love you." He whispered.

"I love you too." She said.

"Bye love."

"Bye Sweetie."

He started to turn away and was about to let go of her hand when Penny startled him.

"Oh geez!" Penny exclaimed.

"What?" Leonard asked hoping to slow down his startled heartbeat.

"I almost forgot to give you something!" Penny said. "It's an expedition present. But please make sure you don't open it up until you get there, alright?" she urged him as she went back into her apartment for a few seconds and brought back a gift wrapped item in a flattened rectangular shape.

"You didn't have to but thank you." Leonard said surprised by the going away gift.

"Have a safe trip." She hugged him once more. "Bye."

_I don't want to let you go!_ She thought as she joined his body to his.

"Bye Penny." Leonard kissed her on the lips and then on the back of each hand before letting go of them. He walked over to Sheldon and reached down to grab his bag and after about 30 seconds had made room in his bag for Penny's gift.

"I'm ready, let's go." Leonard informed Sheldon.

All this had been played out in front of Sheldon who although went over some final calculations in his head concerning the trip was sort of paying attention to Leonard and Penny's goodbye.

"Are you sure?" Sheldon asked.

"Yes! Let's do this before I change my mind." Leonard declared.

"The odds of your changing your mind, as you say, are nearly nil, because you have made the commitment and for you to back out would be a complete betrayal of the team concept that you have agreed to participate in." Sheldon droned.

"Sheldon, off the record, since the expedition hasn't officially started; shut up and let's go!" Leonard raised his voice a little bit.

Sheldon was taken aback for a moment and decided to let it slide since he knew that his friend and roommate was under the influence of emotional forces that for him, although curious, were hard to understand.

"Okay, but from now on, you shall end your statements with 'sir'."

"Dear God this is going to be a long trip." Leonard exclaimed.

Turning to Penny, Sheldon stated, "Now remember, Penny, my room is strictly off limits. Please remember that during our expedition. However I do want to thank you for looking after our apartment while we're gone and for your help in securing the freezer." Sheldon declared.

Penny after biting her lip and suppressing a chuckle at Leonard's outburst, at first kind of rolled her eyes but then sort of shocked at his gratefulness, politely replied:

"I'll remember Sheldon. Take care of your self and good luck."

"I don't believe in luck." Sheldon said

"Well then, have a good trip anyway." She added.

"Thank you. You have a good summer." He said.

"Thank you back." Penny replied with a kind of surprised look that Sheldon had wished her a good summer.

By this time, Sheldon had also grabbed his case and was ready to leave.

"Okay, let us proceed Dr. Hofstadter."

Leonard let out a deep breath and said, "Okay."

Now came the hardest part, leaving Penny behind. His decision to undertake this trip was only made easier by her support and promise to be there as well as accepting his marriage proposal. When and where that would be, was a subject for discussion at a later time. Sheldon went first and Leonard started to follow, he turned his head to see Penny one last time and raised his hand to say goodbye. Penny waved back and blew a kiss to him and mouthed the words "I love you" to him. She fought hard to suppress any tears in front of him and make him abandon the expedition altogether. Leonard just kept waving and then turned away to keep his eyes on the steps as he descend them to begin his and Sheldon's Arctic Expedition.

She stood at the top of the stairs and heard their footsteps descend and grow fainter as no dialogue was heard coming from the two scientists. Penny knew that Leonard's excitement of leaving was tempered by their separation. Her eyes watered up again as she headed back into her apartment and she sat down on her sofa to hug one of her cushions. She lied down and shut her eyes and imagined how the day would be like when he returned. All she could see was giving him the sweetest passionate kisses to welcome him home.

_Come back to me soon!_

She smiled as she cried and fell back to sleep thinking about reuniting with Leonard on her mind.

Several hours later after their arrival at the top of the world; Leonard retreated for a moment alone to a corner of their shack to open up Penny's expedition gift. After removing the blue wrapping paper, he saw a blue blanket which he quickly unfolded. As he did so, a paper and a cardboard photo frame fell out of the middle of the fold. Proceeding to pick up the two items, he read the handwritten note first.

"_My Dearest Leonard:_

_Every time you put this blanket on your body, please think of me and how my love and warmth will comfort you from thousands of miles away. And this is a special blanket because it has sleeves! It's called a 'Snuggie'! I couldn't let you go with just any old blanket! Also, here is a picture of me from one of my portfolios I put together for my acting auditions. It has my name and three hearts, one for each month you'll be gone. Have a good trip and come back safely. I miss you terribly and love you forever._

_Your future wife,_

_Penny"_

Leonard stared at the color photograph framed in a simple black cardboard frame. Penny's golden blonde hair, her deep blue eyes and beautiful face looked back at him. On the lower right hand side she had written in red ink "All my love forever, Penny" with 3 hearts underneath. Leonard's eyes moistened with tears and he felt alone and at the same time took comfort in remembering all of Penny's hugs and kisses, her smile and touch as well as their love making. A tear fell from his eye on to the photograph. Quickly, he wiped away his eyes and sniffled. Wiping away the tear drop from Penny's picture, he then, caressed her cheek with his thumb and gave her image a gentle kiss.

_I promise this will be the last time I'm ever away from you this long!_

As his solitude was pierced by the sounds of Sheldon, Howard and Raj coming from the main room, he proceeded to place the picture on the night stand next to where he would sleep. Unfolding the 'Snuggie' he slid his arms into the sleeves. He smiled as he thought about how unusual this was and yet how Penny! He closed his eyes and pictured Penny right there with him, holding him tight. He missed her so much his heart ached but he knew he would know have to concentrate on getting on with his work.

"One day at a time." He whispered to himself and took in a deep breath and let out a slow and steady sigh. Standing up he went into the main room to begin dinner and stopped in his tracks to notice Wolowitz holding on to a red looking stick holding it in a fashion as one would hold a crossbow.

_This trip is going to feel a lot longer than three months! _ He thought.


End file.
